Visiting The Cordoba Mezquita

24th June 2012

There are two places in Spain that instantly struck a chord within me, Cordoba and San Sebastian. I’ll talk about San Sebastian in its post, but first Cordoba, its beautiful Mezquita-Cathedral (Mosque-Cathedral).

History of the Cordoba Mezquita

Cordoba was the Islamic capital during the Middle Ages, but before the Arabs invaded Spain, it was ruled by the Romans. The Romans back then built a pagan temple and then converted it into a church. But when the Arabs took over, they bought the land from the Romans and began the construction of their mosque on the same site. Today, the remains of the church can be seen through a hole in the ground in the mosque.

You can see the remains of the church inside the mosque

During their rule, the Arabs expanded the mosque and made it into one of the most beautiful mosques in the world. The period of expansion are clearly visible in the different construction techniques. But the Arabs didn’t rule forever, when the Christians returned they built their cathedral right in the middle of the mosque. Right in the middle!

Beautiful architecture

Inside the Cordoba Mezquita

Mixed architechture

Two houses of worship meet

The stunning Cordoba Mezquita

Entering the cathedral from the mezquita

So today, there stands a beautiful cathedral inside the mosque, no separate entry or exit, they share pillars, floors…it just blows you away! Yes, there have been religious issues in the past. But that aside, this is one of the most mind blowing things I’ve ever seen! Especially in today’s day and age where there is so much religious tension between Muslims and Christians. It’s heartwarming seeing this structure, standing the test of time and teaching us a lesson in harmony.